April 25, 2026

Finland Denies Asylum to Two Anti-War Russians, Plans Deportation. They Face Criminal Charges Back Home for Aiding Ukraine.

Anti-war activists Olga and Nikita Belov, who left for Finland after the war in Ukraine began, have been denied asylum and now face deportation to Russia. This is reported by 'Mediazona' and 'Echo'. Mother and son Belov have unsuccessfully tried to appeal the deportation decision. The day before, they were summoned by the police and informed of the start of the deportation process; the Belovs were taken into custody. A pre-trial hearing will take place tomorrow. Finnish media reported that the Russians helped Ukrainian refugees and collaborated with the FinEst volunteer humanitarian center. Additionally, they organized informational pickets and collected funds—including for medical kits for the Ukrainian Armed Forces and other army needs. Finnish authorities consider the Belovs' activities in support of Ukraine to be 'small-scale'. According to the migration service, it does not make them objects of particular interest to the Russian authorities and 'does not create a real threat of serious human rights violations upon return'. Lawyers disagree, noting that collecting financial and material aid for the Ukrainian army and refugees is unambiguously treated as a criminal offense in Russia. 'Given that the Belovs' activities are documented by the Finnish press, they are already priority targets for Russian special services,' stated Gleb Gerbber, head of the Public Reception of Ilya Yashin. Back home, Olga worked as a nurse, and Nikita was an engineer at a factory that began fulfilling military orders. Upon learning of this, he refused to continue working and faced threats and pressure—after which the Belovs decided to leave Russia.